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{{ICE}}
'''Orhan marble''' ''(Liaboan marble)'' was a special kind of rock with powers of repelling dark souls, associated with the moon of the light gods for its heavenly quality. It was not actually a mineral originating on the Great Moon, but rather a rare form of limestone that would work as a magical talisman with sufficient purity. In its purest form it was bluish-white and would glow bright blue in the presence of creatures or servants of the [[Unlife]]. The repulsion effect would be an attack that had to be resisted somewhere below level 10, and it would ward off [[undead]] which were level 3 or lower.


'''Orhan marble''' ''(Modern: Liabo marble)'' is a special kind of rock with powers of repelling dark souls, associated with the moon of the light gods for its heavenly quality. It is not actually a mineral originating on the Great Moon, but rather a rare form of limestone that would work as a magical talisman with sufficient purity. In its purest form it is bluish-white and would glow bright blue in the presence of evil creatures or servants of the [[Unlife]]. The repulsion effect as a doorway would be an attack that had to be resisted between levels 2 and 10, and it glows if they succeed by less than 50 (without cloaking spells). This is only defined in the archaic context of the [[Shadow World]] history. There is no modern lore or definition for "Liabo marble" as a material, even though some of its properties are given in room descriptions.
While the phrase itself is not necessarily used, its properties have been manifest within the game. It may be an implicit aspect of the warding mechanism on the gate of the [[Order of Voln]], which cannot be passed by [[Council of Light]] masters, and in the past there was a room in [[The Graveyard]] that the undead would not enter unless repelled into it by a [[Cleric]]. Its purpose in this case was symbolic.


The term is still explicitly used in the game in rare instances, and might be implicitly present in other old areas. It could be an implicit aspect of the warding mechanism on the gate of the [[Order of Voln]], which the guard is able to tell whose souls have not been cleansed of darkness, especially masters of the [[Council of Light]]. The obelisk room in the Graveyard in the past conspicuously did not have creatures enter it, but the color of the marble is not right and Orhan marble does not seem to exist in old enough documentation to be relevant. Its property of warding off [[undead]] level 3 or lower seems even later.
==Behind The Scenes==
Prior to a change in the roaming mechanics for creatures around roughly the year 2000, monsters avoided the (impure) marble obelisk where [[Kestrel Etrevion]]'s sons were buried. The green marble may reflect the idea that at least one of them worshipped the serpent god, which is supported by the [[Pales#Behind The Scenes|ruined cult]] in the [[Bellacorn|underground stronghold]] of the [[Coastal Cliffs]]. It might also be an allusion to the [[Luukos#Behind The Scenes|lizard god]] monolith in [http://www.hplovecraft.com/writings/texts/fiction/ds.aspx "The Doom That Came to Sarnath"], along with the stone of the crypt being brought from marvelous distances, which is a story referenced underground in the [[Purgatory#Archaeology|Purgatory]] segment.
<pre{{log2}}>
[Graveyard]
Several graves here are clustered around a large marble monument. A low iron railing encloses the area. The burial plots seem to be unplundered, but the dark, freshly turned earth atop one of the graves indicates the presence of an unquiet soul. You also see a faded path.
Obvious paths: west


===I.C.E. Age Example===
>look monument
Ronan's Shrine in the Upper Dragonsclaw outside [[Wehnimer's Landing]] explicitly mentions it as the material of a wall. The material is also inside the shrine as a doorway, but there is no warding effect.
The '''green-veined marble monument''' is a plain obelisk, tall and thin, with no ornamental carving.
<pre{{log2|margin-right=350px}}>
There is an engraving on the wide base.
[The Shore of Dreams]
Fel and pine trees crowd close to the shore of an almost perfectly clear pool. A low wall crafted '''from bright blue Liabo marble''' surrounds the tiny pond, encircling it in a loving embrace. The gleaming surface of the water is disturbed only by concentric rings drifting away from the waterfall lazily spilling down from an outcropping of rocks overhead. Though the shadows are deep here, an occasional beam of light pierces the darkness, illuminating the vivid colors surrounding you. You also see a faint path.
Obvious paths: none


[Beyond the Shore of Dreams]
>read base
Tears spring unbidden to your eyes as you bask in the serenity found here behind the waterfall. The music of water rushing over the stones surrounds you, easing away the cares of the world as you ponder the liquid wall enclosing this room on two sides. Light angles down from a break in the rocks on the northern wall, illuminating the fine spray of droplets floating through the air so that you are in the midst of a tiny, swirling rainbow of glorious color. You also see a '''graceful Liabo marble arch.'''
Obvious exits: out
</pre>
===Modern Example===
The Temple of Lorminstra in [[Solhaven]] has a dais of Liabo marble, which retains the concept that the material glows. This is a throw back reference to older game lore, as Solhaven was not released until late 1998. Though it might simply borrow the term from the Shore of Dreams. The temple borrows various details from the much older one in the Landing. The dais does not repel Council of Light masters.
<pre{{log2|margin-right=350px}}>
[Chamber of Manifest Grace]
Shimmering light from brass sconces mounted at intervals around the room bathe an ornately carved dais of '''Liabo marble''' in a warm glow. The walls are hung with purple cloth trimmed with gold emblems bearing the seal of Lorminstra. A sweet, pungent aroma pervades the room from a pair of golden braziers burning to either side of the altar.
Obvious exits: south

>look altar
Engraved around the base of the altar are scenes of death and rebirth celebrating the benevolence of Lorminstra. The '''pure Liabo marble''' seems to emanate with a faint aura causing the engravings to shimmer as if they were alive. You barely make out a single sigil carved upon the face of the altar and inlaid in gold.
There appears to be something written on it.

>read altar
In the Common language, it reads:
In the Common language, it reads:
HOPE
Here lie the sons of Kestrel Etrevion, princes all, who perished in the battle to regain their ancestral land.
</pre>
</pre>
The temple courtyard also has [[thrakwood]]. It is a material only referenced in a few places from this time period, and seems to have no documented meaning. It is not an [[ICE materials|I.C.E. material]].
Ancient Egyptian obelisks were intended to serve as magical wardings to guard the dead, as well as act as conduits for the soul to travel to the sun god who resided within it. The sun god would be Klysus ([[Luukos]]), consistent with his [[ICE age|I.C.E. Age]] lore, with the incorporation of Orhan marble being blasphemous both to him and Eissa ([[Lorminstra]]). However, his role as a sun god in the [[Changramai#Behind The Scenes|Lankan Empire]] may not have been established yet when [[The Graveyard]] was written, which would simply reduce his [[Purgatory#Behind The Scenes|symbolic]] role to the serpent and soul devourer in the sun god mythology. The sun is still relevant from the Egyptian motifs and [http://danteworlds.laits.utexas.edu/prologue.html the role] of Hell as where "the sun in silence rests." The relationship between Klysus and [[Lorgalis]] was well-established in the lore when The Graveyard was designed.


==Behind the Scenes==
The sun is also important because Eissa is the sister of the [[Ronan|god of night]] (and [[Muylari#Behind The Scenes|dreams]]) who crusades against the Unlife, and [[Bandur Etrevion|Bandur]]'s goddesses [[Kadaena]] and Orgiana ([[Eorgina]]) are associated with flames. (Indeed, his inordinate focus on [[Phantom Gatekeeper|goddesses]] is suggestive within the Osiris/Set and Isis mythology, especially since Orgiana was an expressly male-hating deity. "[[The Legend of the Necropolis of Etrevion]]" insinuates this jealousy of Kestrel.) Since the surface of The Graveyard [[Bandur Etrevion#Behind The Scenes|represents]] [http://www.hplovecraft.com/writings/texts/fiction/eo.aspx Oblivion], the obelisk points toward the [[Flows of essence#River of Life|River of Life]] and so the light, whereas "[[The Dark Path|the dark path]]" descends into the [[Pales|Void]]. Without ornamental carvings there was no guidance toward the afterlife. The symbolism is that the nephews were doomed to limbo forever, beyond the reach of either death god.
Orhan marble is briefly discussed in the context of the Graveyard on the [[Research:The Graveyard]] page. The obelisk for the graves of Kestrel Etrevion's sons is oddly made of marble instead of granite, and the creature roaming mechanics were once such that the undead did not wander into the room without being repelled into it. This was made in very early 1990 and the earliest reference to Orhan marble is page 69 of the Master Atlas Addendum from spring 1990, so there is probably no implicit meaning along these lines. Ronan's shrine (Reann) is later I.C.E. Age and explicitly plays off the documentation.


[[Category:ICE Age]]
[[Category:ICE Age]]

Latest revision as of 05:47, 2 March 2020

Warning: This page concerns archaic world setting information from the I.C.E. Age of GemStone III. It is not canon in contemporary GemStone IV, nor is it canonical for Shadow World as the details may be specific to GemStone III. It is only historical context for certain very old parts of the game and these things should not be mixed.

Orhan marble (Modern: Liabo marble) is a special kind of rock with powers of repelling dark souls, associated with the moon of the light gods for its heavenly quality. It is not actually a mineral originating on the Great Moon, but rather a rare form of limestone that would work as a magical talisman with sufficient purity. In its purest form it is bluish-white and would glow bright blue in the presence of evil creatures or servants of the Unlife. The repulsion effect as a doorway would be an attack that had to be resisted between levels 2 and 10, and it glows if they succeed by less than 50 (without cloaking spells). This is only defined in the archaic context of the Shadow World history. There is no modern lore or definition for "Liabo marble" as a material, even though some of its properties are given in room descriptions.

The term is still explicitly used in the game in rare instances, and might be implicitly present in other old areas. It could be an implicit aspect of the warding mechanism on the gate of the Order of Voln, which the guard is able to tell whose souls have not been cleansed of darkness, especially masters of the Council of Light. The obelisk room in the Graveyard in the past conspicuously did not have creatures enter it, but the color of the marble is not right and Orhan marble does not seem to exist in old enough documentation to be relevant. Its property of warding off undead level 3 or lower seems even later.

I.C.E. Age Example

Ronan's Shrine in the Upper Dragonsclaw outside Wehnimer's Landing explicitly mentions it as the material of a wall. The material is also inside the shrine as a doorway, but there is no warding effect.

[The Shore of Dreams]
Fel and pine trees crowd close to the shore of an almost perfectly clear pool.  A low wall crafted from bright blue Liabo marble surrounds the tiny pond, encircling it in a loving embrace.  The gleaming surface of the water is disturbed only by concentric rings drifting away from the waterfall lazily spilling down from an outcropping of rocks overhead.  Though the shadows are deep here, an occasional beam of light pierces the darkness, illuminating the vivid colors surrounding you.  You also see a faint path.
Obvious paths: none

[Beyond the Shore of Dreams]
Tears spring unbidden to your eyes as you bask in the serenity found here behind the waterfall.  The music of water rushing over the stones surrounds you, easing away the cares of the world as you ponder the liquid wall enclosing this room on two sides.  Light angles down from a break in the rocks on the northern wall, illuminating the fine spray of droplets floating through the air so that you are in the midst of a tiny, swirling rainbow of glorious color.  You also see a graceful Liabo marble arch.
Obvious exits: out

Modern Example

The Temple of Lorminstra in Solhaven has a dais of Liabo marble, which retains the concept that the material glows. This is a throw back reference to older game lore, as Solhaven was not released until late 1998. Though it might simply borrow the term from the Shore of Dreams. The temple borrows various details from the much older one in the Landing. The dais does not repel Council of Light masters.

[Chamber of Manifest Grace]
Shimmering light from brass sconces mounted at intervals around the room bathe an ornately carved dais of Liabo marble in a warm glow.  The walls are hung with purple cloth trimmed with gold emblems bearing the seal of Lorminstra.  A sweet, pungent aroma pervades the room from a pair of golden braziers burning to either side of the altar.
Obvious exits: south

>look altar
Engraved around the base of the altar are scenes of death and rebirth celebrating the benevolence of Lorminstra.  The pure Liabo marble seems to emanate with a faint aura causing the engravings to shimmer as if they were alive.  You barely make out a single sigil carved upon the face of the altar and inlaid in gold.
There appears to be something written on it.

>read altar
In the Common language, it reads:
            HOPE

The temple courtyard also has thrakwood. It is a material only referenced in a few places from this time period, and seems to have no documented meaning. It is not an I.C.E. material.

Behind the Scenes

Orhan marble is briefly discussed in the context of the Graveyard on the Research:The Graveyard page. The obelisk for the graves of Kestrel Etrevion's sons is oddly made of marble instead of granite, and the creature roaming mechanics were once such that the undead did not wander into the room without being repelled into it. This was made in very early 1990 and the earliest reference to Orhan marble is page 69 of the Master Atlas Addendum from spring 1990, so there is probably no implicit meaning along these lines. Ronan's shrine (Reann) is later I.C.E. Age and explicitly plays off the documentation.